With plenty of racist graffiti as evidence and the backing of a federal agency, 75 African-American workers at a Texas Sara Lee factory recently forced a $4 million employment discrimination settlement against Hillshire Brands, a subsidiary of Tyson Foods.
But other factors, including allegations that management intentionally steered its black employees into unsafe jobs at a Sara Lee bakery that closed in 2011, also helped convince the defendant to accept a hefty settlement rather than face an Eastern District of Texas jury, according to an attorney involved in the case.
